Holder: We Didn't Lie About 'Fast and Furious'

He says charges are forthcoming against those who screwed up
By Kevin Spak,  Newser Staff
Posted Feb 2, 2012 1:40 PM CST

Eric Holder angrily denied that the Justice Department was trying to hide anything about the botched "Operation Fast and Furious" program in his testimony before Congress today—and insisted that he'd had no knowledge of the gun-tracking operation. "There's no attempt at any kind of coverup," the attorney general said, pointing out that the department had turned over thousands of documents and intended to turn over more. "This has become political, I get that," he added, according to Fox News.

"Not only did I not authorize those tactics, when I found out about them, I told the field … that those tactics had to stop," he said. (The idea was to track weapons as they made their way to cartels, but authorities lost track of many.) Holder added that those responsible would likely be fired or charged with crimes within six months, once an internal investigation is finished. "I can assure you those people will be removed from federal service," he said, according to CNN. But Republicans weren't satisfied, saying he was still withholding documents, and Darrell Issa threatened to do whatever necessary to obtain them. Issa has previously threatened to charge Holder with contempt of Congress. (More Eric Holder stories.)

Get the news faster.
Tap to install our app.
X
Install the Newser News app
in two easy steps:
1. Tap in your navigation bar.
2. Tap to Add to Home Screen.

X